The Leopard by Jo Nesbo, Harvill Secker, $32.95
Since Swedish author Stieg Larsson and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo smashed the bestseller lists, a new literary sub-genre has developed – “Scandicrime” – with a buzz all of its own. Scandicrime is noir-ish, slightly subversive packed with antiheroes and set in the frozen snow-deadened landscapes of Scandinavia. There literally seems to be something in the water – well the snow – that seems perfectly suited to confronting, dark, emotional thrillers but the similarities between the works ends there and standing head and shoulders above the Scandi stereotypes is Norwegian writer Jo Nesbo.
The Leopard is Nesbo’s sixth Harry Hole novel published in English (his eighth over all) and at 611 pages, it may seem quite an undertaking. But fear not, you won’t be putting this down! Nesbo’s special skill is in his storytelling – even more impressive when you consider this is in translation.
The gentle drip drip of nuggets of information, and superb twists and turns, keep you guessing always a few steps behind the wily protagonist – brooding detective Harry Hole, who at the beginning of the story is holed up in Hong Kong, trying to erase the memory of his last painful case and the loss of his wife and son with a mix of compulsive gambling and opium.
The beautiful Kaja is sent over to lure Harry back to Oslo to work on the case of a burgeoning serial killer whose form of murder involves a uniquely gruesome torture instrument called Leopold’s apple which chokes its victims and then shoots deadly spikes into them at the pull of a chain. Harry only agrees to come because officer Kaja tells him his father is gravely ill.
Once back in Oslo, Harry finds himself at the centre of a police turf-war and forced to work undercover with only a couple of officers to help him (including Kaja) which of course suits his unconventional ways perfectly. As the bodies mount up, it becomes evident that the only connection between the victims is that they all spent a night together in an isolated mountain hut along a ski route and the killer is picking off the guests one by one. How many will die before Harry works it out?
The action switches deftly between Hong Kong, Norway and Africa and the constantly swirling plot is laced with a fevered romance, a subplot as Harry tries to help his dying father and lashings of dark emotion. This is slick, sophisticated thriller telling at its peak.
About the Author
Jo Nesbo was born in Oslo, Norway in 1960, his father a bus company managing director and his mother a librarian. He describes his childhood as “a painful delight” and decided to be a writer when he was 14 “songwriting for my friends who all played in bands”.
He worked as a freelance journalist and even a strockbroker before writing his first Harry Hole novel at 36, an instant hit winning the Glass Key Award for best Nordic crime novel. He also continued writing songs and is the lead singer and songwriter in Norwegian rock band Di Derre.
His inspiration for Harry Hole was “the police officer in the village where my grandmother lived. She would tell us kids that if we weren’t home by eight, Hole would come get us!” and he says he derived the ideas for the crimes in The Leopard from “my own fears and nightmares.”
Jo has a daughter Selma, 11, and is currently working on his ninth Harry Hole novel.
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